Latch mechanism



p 5, 1962 A. L. PELCIN 3,055,204

LATCH MECHANISM Filed Jan. 5, 1960 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 INVENTOR.

ALBERT Z. PELC/N I ,4 rroxg/ve Y5 Sept. 25, 1962 A. L. PELCIN LATCH MECHANISM 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed Jan. 5, 1960 ML u' w L 'LJ INVENTOR. Azemr A PELC/N United States Patent 3,055,204 LATCH MECHANISM Albert L. Pelcin, Maple Heights, Ohio, assignor to The Eastern Company, a corporation of Connecticut Filed Jan. 5, 1960, Ser. No. 572 Claims. (Cl. 70--153) This invention relates to latch mechanisms of the type having a substantially flush position when installed and, more particularly, to such a flush type of mechanism having a push button actuator means. Latch mechanisms of this kind are applicable to various uses but are particularly suitable for the doors of utility trucks and other vehicles because they do not have any projecting part likely to cause personal injury.

As one of its objects this invention aims to provide a novel construction for such a flush type push button actuated latch mechanism which is of a simple and practical form for ease of manufacture, assembly and operation, and which comprises a relatively small number of parts and is so designed that the same parts are usable in either right-hand or left-hand installations.

Another object is to provide a latch mechanism of the character above referred to and having the push butt n means thereof in camming co-operation with a shiftable bolt for retracting the same.

A further object is to provide a latch mechanism having the characteristics mentioned above and also embodying key-actuatable means comprising a locking member movable into holding co-operation with the push button means for preventing retraction of the bolt.

Other objects and advantages of this invention will be apparent in the following detailed description and in the accompanying drawings forming a part of this specification and in which,

FIG. 1 is a front elevation showing the latch mecha nism of this invention mounted on a swingable door or the like;

FIG. 2 is a longitudinal section taken through the mechanism on section line 22 of FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is mainly a rear elevation but with the bolt housing shown in section, the view being taken as indicated by section line 33 of FIG. 2;

FIG. 4 is a transverse section taken through the mechanism on section line 4-4 of FIG. 2;

FIG. 5 is a perspective View of the bolt in a detached relation; and

FIG. 6 is a front elevation showing the same latch mechanism as in FIGS. 1 to 5 inclusive but in a somewhat different installed position on the door.

As one practical embodiment of this invention the drawings show a latch mechanism 10 adapted for substantially flush installation on a swingable door or the like 11 and comprising, in general, a support structure or housing means 12, a latch member in the form of a bolt 13, and push button type actuator means 14 for moving the bolt from one to another of its operative positions.

The housing means 12 comprises a main housing member 16 and an auxiliary housing member or bolt housing 17 connected therewith and providing a guideway 18 in which the bolt 13 is slidably movable. The main housing member 16 is in the form of a pan-shaped sheet metal member having a substantially flat rear wall 19 and a front flange means 20 for use in mounting the latch mechanism on the door 11. The flange means 20 is here shown as being an out-turned lateral flange extending around the perimeter of the front portion of the main housing member 16. The rear wall 19 is connected with the lateral flange 20 by pairs of side and end walls 22, 23 and 24, 25 which form the side and end walls of a shallow recess 26 extending into the main housing member 16 from the front thereof and Whose bottom wall is the rear Wall 19.

The housing means 12 of the latch mechanism 10 also comprises a flat front wall or cover plate 28 extending across the front opening of the recess 26 and connected with the main housing member 16 as by means of suitable connecting screws 29 extending through the lateral flange 20 and engaged in threaded openings of the cover plate. The cover plate 28 is here shown as also being in the form of a sheet metal stamping but is of a relatively heavier weight or gauge than the sheet metal of the main housing member 16.

In FIGS. 1 to 4 inclusive the latch mechanism 10 is shown as having been mounted in a substantially flush relation on the door 11 and with the pan portion of the main housing member 16 extending in a rearward direction through an opening 31 of the door. The housing structure 12 is here shown as being of a substantially quadrangular plan shape and the door opening 31 as being of a similar quadrangular shape, but the invention is not limited to a latch mechanism of quadrangular shape inasmuch as the housing structure may assume various other forms.

The latch mechanism 10 is shown in FIGS. 1 to 4 in' elusive with the lateral flange 20 and the edge portion of the cover plate 28 overlapping and lying against the portions of the door 11 surrounding the opening 31. The latch mechanism is attached to the door 11 by suit-' able fastening members 32 which are here shown as being rivets. When the latch mechanism 10 is mounted on the door 11 in this relation the bolt 13 is in a normally projecting position, as shown in the drawings, and will be engageable with a suitable striker (not shown) for retaining the door in a door-latched or a latched and door-locked condition.

The cover plate .28 is provided with a hand-grasp portion 33 which, in this instance, is in the form of a bead portion or lateral rib extending transversely of the cover plate and located along one edge of an access opening 34 which communicates with the recess 26 and affords access for an operators hand in grasping the hand-grasp portion 3 3. The cover plate 28 is of a size and shape corresponding substantially with the size and plan shape of the flanged portion of the main housing member 16 and has a plate portion 35 overlying the major portion of the front opening of the recess 26 while the access opening 34 overlies and communicates with the portion of the recess located adjacent the end wall 24.

The cover plate 28 also includes a flange 36 connected with the hand-grasp portion 33 and extending in a rearward direction into engagement with the rear Wall 19. The flange 36 forms a transverse partition wall extending across the recess 26 and dividing the same into a locking chamber 26 and a pocket portion 26 the latter of which is accessible to the operators hand through the access opening 34. The hand-grasp portion 33 and the flange extension 36 comprise formed or deflected portions of the cover plate 28 and are here shown as being formed by a partially sheared portion of the cover plate which was displaced therefrom in forming the access opening 34.

The plate portion 35 of the cover plate 28 is provided with a guide opening 38, in this case a circular opening, and is also provided with a second circular opening 39 located between the guide opening 38 and the access opening 34. The guide opening 38 accommodates a portion of the actuator means 14 and the opening 39 accommodates a portion of a key-actuatable locking means 40, as will be further explained hereinafter.

The bolt 13 is here shown as comprising an elongated body portion 42 slidable in the guideway 18 of the bolt housing 17 and having a latching portion 42 on the outer end thereof. 3 The latching portion 42* is normally in an extended or projecting position relative to the bolt housing 17 as shown in the drawings and to which it is urged by the action of a compression spring 44 located in the bolt housing and effective against theinner or rear end of the body portion 42. The bolt 13 is also provided with a longitudinal slot 45 and with a transverse slot 46 which intersects the longitudinal slot at the rear end thereof. A thrust element 47 is provided on the bolt 13 and is here shown as comprising a hardened metal pin located in the transverse slot 46. The thrust pin 47 is cylindrical and of a cross-sectional size in relation to the transverse slot 46 to be rollable or rotatable therein as is further explained hereinafter. v

The bolt 13 and the guideway 18 are here shown as being of a quadrangular transverse cross-sectional shape and the bolt is disposed in the guideway so that the rollable thrust pin 47 is on the side of the bolt :facing toward the recess 26 of the .main housing member 16. The compression spring 44 is retained in the guideway 18 by a Spring seat 48 assembled into the inner or rear end of the bolt housing 17.

The guideway 18 and the longitudinal slot 45 of the bolt 13 are in communication with the recess 26 and accessible therefrom through a longitudinal slot 49 provided in the bottom wall 19. The slots 45 and 49 are located in an opposed relation to the guide opening 38 and the latter slot is substantially centered on the axis of the guide opening.

The actuator means 14 comprises an inner portion 51 located in the recess 26, and a push button portion 52 forming a manually actuatable portion and projecting outwardly of the housing means 12 through the guide opening 38 of the cover plate 28. The inner portion 51 is here shown as comprising anintermediate body portion 51 and a cam member 51' carried thereby and having a bevelled cam edge or thrust surface 3 engaging the thrust pin or roller 47 of the bolt 13. v

The body portion 51 of the actuator means 14 is of a greater transverse dimension than the diameter of the guide opening 38 so as to be co-operable with the inner surface of the cover plate 28 as a stop means for retaining the inner actuator portion 51 in the recess 26 by limiting the extent to which the push button portion 52 can project through the guide opening. The body portion 51 and the push button portion 52 are here shown as being cylindrical in shape for convenience of manufacture and other reasons, but rotation of the actuator means in the guide opening 38 is prevented by constructing the cam member 51. as an integral fiat blade projection on the body portion and whose co-operation with the side edges of the slot 49 prevents such rotation. The body portion 51 is provided with a transverse or tangential locking slot 55 for a purpose to be presently explained and which is on the side thereof facing toward the opening 39 and is always maintained in this relative position by the nonrotative co-operation of the cam member 51 with the slot 49.

The cam member 51 of the actuator means 14 is of a length to project through the slot 49 into the longitudinal "slot 45 of the bolt 13 and such that the cam edge 53 will be in thrust engagement with the pin 47 for all operative positions of the actuator means. The expansive action of the spring 44 against the bolt 13 holds the pin 47 against the cam edge 53 and, when the latching portion 4220f the bolt 13 is in its normally extended position as shown in FIG. 2, the action of the spring will also hold the push button portion 52 in its extended position relative to the cover plate 28 as shown in this .view.

Inward manual actuation of the push button 52 causes the cam edge 53 to move across the pin 47 in thrust eng'agement therewith thereby causing retraction of the bolt 13 in the guideway 18, During this bolt retracting function of the cam member 51*, the pin 47 will be rollable in the slot 46.t0 facilitate the application of the actuating thrust to the bolt 13 with a minimum amount of scraping and wear. The cam edge 53 is here shown as being a flat surface and disposed in a 45 angular relation to the axis of the guide opening 38 but this cam edge can have any suitable contour or shape and can be disposed in any suitable angular relation.

The actuator means 14 can be locked against boltretracting movement and, for this purpose, the latch mechanism 10 is provided with the key-actuatable means 40 which comprises a cylinder lock assembly 56 supported on the cover plate 28 by a collar 57 and co-operating nut 58. The lock assembly 56 is rotatable in the opening 39 and carries a locking member 59 which is swingable thereby and has a free end or blade portion 59* movable to and from an engaged or looking position in the slot 55. When the locking member 59 is disengaged from the locking slot 55 by movement to an unlocking position, the push button portion 52 will be manually actuatable to cause retracting actuation of the bolt 13 in opposition to the force of the spring 44 as explained above but, when the locking member is engaged in the slot as shown in FIG. 2, manual actuation of the actuator means 14 will be prevented and the latch mechanism 10 will be in a locked condition.

When the latch mechanism 10 is in a locked condition, the bolt 13 will still be movable in a retracting direction in the guideway 18 by the co-operation of the latching portion 42 with the keeper because the longitudinal slot 45 will permit a separating movement of the pin 47 away from the cam edge 53. The latch mechanism 10 can therefore also be referred to as being a slam type of device allowing the door 11 to be slammed to its closed position even though the latch mechanism is in a locked condition.

FIG. 6 of the drawings shows the latch mechanism 10 mounted on a door 60 in a somewhat different relation than is shown in FIGS. 1 to 4 inclusive for the door 11. In FIG. 6 the latch mechanism 10 is also in a flush relation but is secured against the inner surface of the door 60 by the rivets 32. When the latch mechanism 10 is installed in this relation against the inner surface of the door 60, the door is provided with openings 61 and 62 to accommodate the push button portion 52 and the cylinder lock assembly 56 and is also provided with an opening 63 of the same size and shape as the access opening 34 of the cover plate 28.

From the accompanying drawings and the foregoing detailed description it will now be readily understood that this invention provides a latch mechanism for a swingable door or the like which is of a very simple and practical form comprising a minimum number of parts adapted to be readily produced and easily assembled, and which mechanism is so designed that the same parts are usable therein for both right-hand and left-hand installations of the mechanism. It will now also be understood that the flush type latch mechanism of this invention includes actuator means of the push button type which cooperates directly with the bolt for shifting the same to its retracted position, and also embodies key-actuatable locking means co-operable with the push button means for preventing bolt-retracting actuation thereof. Other novel characteristics and advantages of the latch mechanism have already been described hereinabove and need not be further summarized at this point.

Although the latch mechanism of this invention has been illustrated and described herein to a somewhat detailed extent it will be understood, of course, that the invention is not to be regarded as being limited correspondingly in scope but includes all changes and modifications coming within the terms of the claims hereof.

Having described my invention, I claim:

1. A latch mechanism comprising a pan-shaped housing member having a shallow recess therein and a substantially flat rear wall forming the bottom of said recess, flange means on said housing member adapting the same for mounting of said latch mechanism with the front thereof in a substantially flush relation on a support comprising a door, a cover plate disposed against said housing member and overlying a portion only of said recess so as to leave another portion of said recess uncovered, said cover plate having a guide opening therein, a bolt housing on said rear wall providing a guideway extending transverse to the axis of said guide opening, a bolt slidable in said bolt housing, spring means urging said bolt along said guideway to an extended position relative to the bolt housing, actuator means of the push-button type shifitable in said guide opening and co-operable with said bolt for retracting the same in opposition to said spring means, and hand grasp means on said cover plate and located so as to lie adjacent to and be accessible through such uncovered other portion of said recess.

2. Latch mechanism as defined in claim 1 wherein said cover plate has an access opening therein overlying said other portion of said recess, and wherein said hand grasp means is formed at least in part by material displaced from said access opening.

3. Latch mechanism as defined in claim 2 wherein a portion of said displaced material forms a partition wall extending across said recess.

4. In a latch mechanism; a main housing comprising a pan-shaped rear member having a shallow recess therein and a substantially fiat rear portion forming the bottom wall of said recess, and a cover plate connected with said rear member and extending across said recess; a bolt housing carried by said bottom wall; a bolt shiftable in said bolt housing; spring means effective against said bolt and urging the same toward an extended position relative to the bolt housing; said cover plate having a round guide opening therein and said bottom wall having an access slot means substantially opposite said guide opening and providing communication between said recess and bolt housing; an actuator member comprising a body portion located in said recess and being of greater transverse dimension than said guide opening, and push button means projecting through said guide opening; said actuator member having a transverse locking slot in one side of said body portion and also having a cam blade in camrning engagement with said bolt through said access slot means; and key-actuatable locking means supported by said cover plate and movable in-to locking co-operation with said actuator member by engagement of a portion thereof in said locking slot; said cam blade co-operating with edge portions of said access slot means for retaining said actuator member in a nonrotative position with said locking slot presented toward said locking means.

5. Latch mechanism as defined in claim 4 wherein said main housing has flange means thereon adapting the same for mounting of said latch mechanism with the front thereof in a substantially flush relation on a support comprising a door; said cover plate having a second opening therein and a hand grasp portion adjacent said second opening and accessible therethrough; and wherein said key-actuata-ble means is supported on said cover plate at a location between said guide opening and said second opening; and wall means on said cover plate and extending into said recess to prevent access to said key-actuatable means through said second opening.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,558,980 Halinka Oct. 27, 1925 1,956,098 Jacobson Apr. 24, 1934 1,965,939 Jacobi July 10, 1934 2,621,954 Buck Dec, 16, 1952 2,900,204 Pelcin Aug. 18, 1959 2,916,905 Podlesak Dec. 15, 1959 FOREIGN PATENTS 575,395 Canada May 5, 1959 

